Twenty years ago, British rock had its Annus Mirabilis. Radiohead, Verve and Spiritualized created their best works in the 90s. At the end, OK Computer became a cult, a part of collective consciousness and introduced us to the new millennium in the most precise possible manner. America was already on their knees thanks to the predecessor titled Bends. OK Computer followed the same narrative about alienation and not being able to fit into the concrete jungle of modern propolis.
The sincerity, openness and form in which OK Computer was delivered made it an everlasting masterpiece. The most important Zeitgeist album of the nineties just got its rendition, and oh man, did we needed more of it.
Some of my all time favorites from Radiohead are part of OK Computer. Ever since it was featured on the episode of Six Feet Under, Lucky never left my favorites playlist. Thom Yorke claims that this is one of the band’s rare optimistic songs. I am not quite sure how optimistic are following verses: Pull me out ot the plane crash, pull me out of the edge, because I am your superhero, we are standing on the edge. Even If you are not a fan of alternative music, I am pretty sure there is no chance you’ve never heard Karma Police or High and Dry before. In case you never saw a video for Karma Police, I highly suggest you run to YouTube right away and check it out because it is one of the best music videos ever made. Needless to say, Thom’s falsetto dominates everywhere, including No Surprises, another explicit castigation of modern society.
The rendition of this cult release comes with three never released before tracks: Lift, I Promise and Man Of War. They all fit here so perfectly, I am quite shocked they didn’t appear on the original release. I guess when you are as brilliant as Radiohead, it is difficult to make the final selection and get rid of equally great tunes. They are known for recording a song and then waiting a decade or so to put it on the official album. True Love Waits and Nude are perfect examples, but we are not talking about other albums now. Let’s focus on OK Computer again. Man Of War was dropped as promotional single, and it showed us what Radiohead represented before diving into electronic niche. The video might just be one of the best videos of the year. All the hipsters will appreciate that this release comes in vinyl and C90 mixtape form. I bet Lift sounds gorgeous on the vinyl.
